leprechaun
Americannoun
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a dwarf or sprite.
-
a conventionalized literary representation of this figure as a little old man who will reveal the location of a hidden crock of gold to anyone who catches him.
noun
Etymology
Origin of leprechaun
1595–1605; < Irish leipreachán, lucharachán, MIr luchrapán, lupra ( c ) cán, metathesized forms of Old Irish lúchorp ( án ), equivalent to lú- small + corp body (< Latin corpus ) + -án diminutive suffix
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He memorably dressed up as a leprechaun, another time as an FBI agent.
From Los Angeles Times
As Fintan O'Toole quipped recently in the Irish Times, his country "found the crock of gold at the end of the rainbow without even trying to catch the leprechaun."
From Salon
Most Americans are familiar with the Snap, Crackle and Pop kids, Tony the Tiger, the Lucky Charms leprechaun, the Trix rabbit, Toucan Sam from Froot Loops and dozens more.
From Salon
It is easy-breezy, light spirited — rainbows, leprechauns, good luck, good cheer — it is childlike in its commitment to being pure fun.
From Salon
Three years later came Crock of Gold, with its album cover featuring a painting by Shane MacGowan of leprechauns that resembled the demons that seemed to haunt him throughout his life.
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
